Continuous process of ornamenting floor coverings



Patented Oct. 16, 1928.

UNITED STATES CHARLES 0. KARPF, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

CONTINUOUS PROCESS OF ORNAMENTING FLOOR COVERINGS.

Io Drawing.

This invention relates to a process for ornamentingfloor covering; more particularly for aprocess of continuously ornamenting floor covering of the felt base variety.

Where I have attempted to ornament floor covering, particularly at relatively low cost, as in making felt base products, the process of depositing the ornamental pattern upon the felt base by the mash block, utilizing as the coating material viscous paint base products, I have found not only is the process not susceptible of continuous operation with sufficient speed due to the time attendant to proper drying and character of feed of the F web of material relatively to the impressing members, but, also, the nature of the ornamentation is confined to designs of a relatively simple character.

An object, therefore, of my invention resides in the provision of an improved process for ornamenting floor covering, particularly of the felt base variety, including first the modification of the surface of a web of ma terial, such as felt base, with a surface finish comprising a sealing coat of the character which may have impressed thereon an ornamentation utilizing printers ink as may be deposited on an engraved plate, having fineness of definition of ornamentation equivalent to that in printing upon paper whereby also the speed of operation accompanying the printing on paper is obtained. Following the step of ornamenting, a wear coat, sufiiciently transparent to make visible theret-hrough the ornamentation, is deposited on the surface coating of printing ink. the composite layers having the wearing characteristics of the final coat, yet including defi iition, brilliancy and complexity of design heretofore not attainable by the mash block process and far exceeding the mash block process in speed, of operation and production.

In the practice of my invention, I first provide a printing plate preferably in the nature such as may be mounted on a rotary printers roll. The printing plate preferably includes a design. adaptable for making repeats upon a continuous web to produce an ornamented web of continuous design or, for certain purposes, the plate may be of the character which will deposit repeats, each forming a unitary design. The plate is pref-v erably made by selecting a design which may .be a natural product, such as wood or marble blocks. Photographically the design is Application filed March 21, 1927. Serial No. 177,214v

reproduced, the subject matter being pref- .erably marble tile, grained wood or any ornate surface Without regard to complexity of design. By well known processes, from the negative so obtained a positive is produced and then a sensitized photogravure carbon tissue paper is made, such as intaglio process of printing. An etched plate is thereafter produced of the character referred to inthe printing art as the Benday process, thus affording the reproduction of various shades of the same primary color with a single plate. It is preferred to make the plate utilizing screen of relatively coarse texture, for purposes which will hereinafter appear. The production of a plate of this character breaks up the surface into minute cells and where the screen used is of a relatively coarse texture, the quantity of rinting ink capable of being retained makes t e same particularly admirably suitable in the art of making floor covering, as will more clearly appear as this description proceeds.

For ornamenting floor covering, it is preferred to utilize a felt base webbed material procurable 0n the market and comprising an asphaltic or similar bitumen impregnated felt having one face thereof already backed by acpaint coat. This web is then fed through a roll to apply a sealing coat which may be of any desirable tone and color, the color being chosen such as will intensify and blend with the primary design to be impressed thereover. This sealing coat is suitably doctored to produce a texturewhich will take printing thereon from a printing plate as previously prepared. The web is thereafter fed through the printing plate, a feeding roll for ordinary printers ink being used to deposit the necessary material upon the plate. For certain purposes, the plate is doctored or wiped to remove excess printing ink therefrom before the impression is made on the felt base.

As has been previously indicated, the platev having been made through a relatively coarse textured screen, the cells so produced will serve to hold a relatively'large quantity of printing ink. Complete deposition of the printing ink upon the felt base is facilitated by reason of the highly resilient character of the felt base surface. by this process there may be'deposited sufficient printing ink to give the necessarybrilliancy and surface ornamentation upon the It will be apparent that felt base. However, as the printig plate surface is coarse textured and formed with minute cells, the design reproduced therefrom will have the same character and, for certain purposes, undesirably discloses this screen texture upon the felt base. For blending and obliterating the celled texture of the design on the felt base I immediately, while the printing ink is still wet, rcflexively bend the web of material over the first of a group of festooning rolls. It should be observed that the bend made is as sharp as will be permitted without danger of breaking the web. Due to the relative thickness of the felt base, the surface having the printing thereon will be alternately compressed and expanded. This actionserves to blendthe printing ink deposited upon the surface to obliterate and blend the cell structure.

In progressively feeding the web of material through the series of rolls including, first, the sealing coat and then the printing coat,

the time element is such as to permit the printing ink to thoroughly dry. I have found that a period of less than an hour. is sufficient to dry the printing ink ornamented surface to permit the application thereto of an additional coat, which may be another ornamental coat, where it is contemplated to produce a multi-color effect. However, for similar multi-sha'de, single color ornamentation, the ornament-ed surface has applied thereto a final coat. For this purpose the web is drawn through a varnishing or lacquering bath or series of rolls where a coat of resinous varnish may be applied. It is preferred, however, to have the final coat of a varnish of a gelatinized nitrocellulose base or similar gelatinized cellulose compound, such as acetyl cellulose, cellulose ethers or the like. It will be observed that where I refer to varnish, I mean to include thereby varnishes of the resin base, artificial or natural, or cellulose compound base.

Normal time for drying, accompanied by baking or heating to facilitate the rapidity of this action, follows the application of the final coat. These coats may be in quantities in accordance with the thickness desired.

The product so prepared forms the final floor covering. It will be observed that by the process described I have been enabled to continuously and rapidly provide a floor covering eliminating expensive machinery normally used for applying ornamental coats characteristic of the mash block process. The time element for producing the felt base is materially shortened as the drying required for paint coat ornamented floor covering is entirely eliminated. It will be observed that though approximately one hour has been set forth as sufficient to dry the printing ink surface, by the addition'of suitable ink dryers this time also may be materially reduced.

It will further be observed that by reason of the nature of the engraved plate used, I may not only obtain intricate designs not possible by the mash block ornamenting process, but also by using the celled plate upon the relatively resilient floor covering base, I may deposit suflicient printing ink and coloring matter to give the necessary brilliancy to the ornamented surface.

It will also be observed that even though I may use a printing plate of relatively coarse textured surface, tending to give a celled structure to the ornamented surface, by the novel step of obliterating the sharp outlines of the cell structure, I obtain a design blended throughout to give the appearance of that which may be produced by as fine a printing plate as used on highly glazed printing paper.

Having thus described my invention and illustrated its use, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The process of forming a floor covering Which consists in applying to a waterproof flexible felt base of the flooring type a sealing coat of paint, which coat is smooth and flat, then applying to the sealing coat a decoration inink from an etched plate having a wide mesh screen, then before the ink is dry reversely bending the flexible body so as to blend out the efiects of the screen, and finally covering the body with a transparent wear coating.

In witness whereof I have signed and sealed this specification.

CHARLES O. KARPF. 

